Matthew Murdock (Earth-21399)
Blinded as a child, Matt Murdock dedicated his life to the pursuit of justice after his father was murdered for not losing a fixed boxing match. By day, he fights crime as a successful lawyer, but by night prowls the streets of Hell's Kitchen as the vigilante Daredevil, hunting down those criminals he can't punish in the courtroom. History Early Life Matthew Michael Murdock was born in Hell's Kitchen to a single father named Johnathon Murdock, a boxer who went by the name "Jack the Devil". Unfortunately, Jack's boxing career was middling, as was his income. Wishing to make Matt a better man than himself, Jack insisted that Matt stick to his studies rather than play sports with the other kids. As a result, Matt had few friends in his early childhood and was taunted with demeaning nicknames that implied he lacked a spine. One day, 8-year-old Matt saw a blind man walking across the street, directly into the path of an oncoming truck. Matt heroically pushed the man out of the way and saved his life. The truck crashed and a radioactive substance spilled out, splashing Matt across the face and blinding him. While recovering in the hospital, Matt discovered his hearing, smell, taste, and touch were amplified to superhuman degrees, and he was overwhelmed with the amount of stimuli. The hospital staff struggled to comprehend the nature of Murdock's ailment. Jack became desperate, and so sought out the help of a blind pool hall hustler known only to the other patrons as "Stick". Under Stick's tutelage, Matt not only learned to control his enhanced senses, but even secretly trained in martial arts. His heroic actions in the accident also earned him some newfound popularity at school. When Matt was around ten years old, Jack found a new contract with fight promoter Roscoe Sweeney, who was working as a fixer on the payroll of the then-28-year-old Wilson Fisk. Sweeney promised to provide Jack enough money to put Matt through school if Jack threw his next fight. Jack, however, ignored his order and won the fight by knockout, wanting Matt to still be able to look up to him. When Fisk heard about Jack's victory, he had Jack murdered in front of Matt, who was waiting outside the arena. The killer was unaware of Matt's enhanced senses and figured Matt wouldn't be able to identify him. Matt spent the rest of his childhood in a Catholic orphanage. Stick became his new father figure for a time, until Stick disappeared without warning one day. Law School After high school, Matt attended Columbia University's law school, where he specialized in criminal cases. It was here that he met two of most important people of his life: Franklin "Foggy" Nelson, his roommate and best friend; and Elektra Natchios, a visitor from Greece and Matt's first love. Unfortunately, Matt and Elektra's relationship was short-lived; she abruptly dropped out and returned to Greece after her father was mysteriously assassinated, leaving Matt confused and heartbroken. Matt eventually graduated summa cum laude from Columbia, with Foggy graduating cum laude. Sharing a desire to see justice brought to the gritty streets of Hell's Kitchen, they started a private firm together called Nelson & Murdock. The Big Case & Becoming Daredevil Nelson & Murdock's first few cases were mostly civil - cases of workplace discrimination, divorce settlements, etc. However, their extensive legal knowledge and positive reputation among their clientele led them to becoming rising stars in Hell's Kitchen. One day, Nelson & Murdock got its first major client, a college student named Rebecca Blake. She had been assaulted by a member of the local fraternity in an attack that left her permanently paralyzed, and sought Nelson & Murdock's representation after the alleged culprit, Michael Reese, sued her for defamation. Despite Nelson & Murdock's best efforts, the court ruled in Michael's favor due to his solid alibi and the fact that Rebecca's attacker was masked, so he could not be properly identified. Matt, who noticed thanks to his enhanced senses that Michael was lying, was outraged at the verdict - even more so when, on the way home from a night at Josie's Bar with Foggy, he noticed Michael was assaulting a different woman several blocks away. Disguising himself with a blindfold, Matt tracked Michael down and beat him senseless, threatening to do it again if he continued this behavior. Matt felt right for exacting justice on Michael when the law couldn't, and resolved to protect the streets of Hell's Kitchen as a masked vigilante. Powers and Abilities Powers * Superhuman Senses ** Hearing ** Smell ** Touch ** Equilibrium Abilities * Hand-to-Hand Combat * Acrobatics * Legal Knowledge * Interrogation * Detective Skills Category:Heroes Category:Created by N0bodii Category:Versions of Daredevil Category:Earth-21399 Category:Heroes of Earth-21399